Local Food Funders

Foundation Strategies for Food Security

The McGregor Fund and two funding partners collaborated on an extensive document outlining ways funders can effectively support food security programming.  The document, Foundation Strategies for Investing in Food Security, can be found here. 

This report touches on all relevant issues related to food security from emergency food distribution, to access, to growing your own, to public policy.    Not only is the list of strategies comprehensive, they cover a variety of time-frames from short-term to long-term. 

If you are new to food funding and are interested in food security (ensuring access to nutritious food for your most vulnerable residents), this report is an excellent place to start.  If you have been at this for some time, this report will help you refine your efforts and help make you a better informed advocate.

In short, there is something of value in this report for every food oriented funder.

Call for Guest Bloggers!

We'd like to initiate a series of guest blogs from funders at the national and local levels who can share their experiences supporting local food programs.  This is an opportunity to highlight the work of your foundation and your grantees and/or share your knowledge on special topics. 

Your approach can range from a rigorous peer-reviewed case study to a free flowing stream of local food consciousness.  The path you take is up to you.  Sharing experience and starting discussion is what it's all about.

Please let us know if you are interested, give us an idea of your topic and we'll see where we can take it.

(The repressed lawyer in me wants to make clear we reserve the right to publish or to not publish and to edit or to not edit depending on tone, content, relevance and, of course, whatever mood we happen to be in at the time.)

 

Come to the Table North Carolina

Come to the Table NC is a project of the North Carolina Council of Churches coordinated by RAFI-USA  with funding from the Duke Endowment.   They offer a wide variety of resources to churches and faith-based groups interested in supporting local farmers and addressing local hunger.  They have three regional conferences in NC coming up over the next few weeks. 

Their in-depth guide to supporting local foods is an excellent primer for any group, faith-based or otherwise, interested in jump-starting a local food program.  I think this is an outstanding example of how local food programs and concepts can be quickly adopted and mainstreamed by local organizations.

Great work!

Welcome!

This purpose of this blog is to provide a dynamic forum for sharing experience and innovation related to funding local food and sustainable agriculture programs.  Click here for a more detailed welcome. 

Join us in discussing why funding local food is important, how you can get started as a local food funder, how it impacts quality of life, health, jobs and community resilience in so many ways.  Share your experience and get information regarding farmers markets, food hubs, community kitchens and more. 

Please come back often to see how your peers in community philanthropy are supporting the development and resilience of their communities through local food grantmaking.

Open Thread - Local Food and Local Economic Development

This open thread is for the exchange of ideas and experiences related to connecting the promotion of local foods with efforts to revitalize local economies.  Does local food mean local jobs? 

Open Thread - Farmers Markets

We're using this as an open discussion thread for new ideas, best practices,and general questions related to farmers markets.

Sustainable Agriculture and Food System Funders - SAFSF

Are you funding programs related to local or sustainable food systems? Did you know about the Sustainable Agriculture and Food System Funders affinity group? Check out their website www.safsf.org for a treasure trove of useful information and resources for local food funders.

USDA Food Hub Blog

Check out the USDA's blog on food hubs. 

Food hubs are a highly effective way to quickly build local food infrastructure.  They require an extensive and inclusive planning process and support from multiple funders. 

If you've helped fund a food hub, please share your experience in the comments.

Looking for partnership templates between local and national food system funders

Are  you a national level funder who has partnered successfully with place-based local food grantmakers - or vice versa - are  you a local funder who has worked successfully with a national level funder? 

What can you share about your experience?  How did your perspective change?  What would you tell your peers to do differently? 

Why local foods?

Why do you fund local food programs?  Why should other funders invest in local food systems?